


Still Life

by Crystalshard



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Accidental Voyeurism, M/M, Masturbation, there are things Boil does not want to hear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:15:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24111904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crystalshard/pseuds/Crystalshard
Summary: Late at night, sound carries, and tent canvas doesn't block much.Boil's learned to tune out his brothers having some alone time, but it's much more difficult to ignore things when it involves his General and his Commander.
Relationships: CC-2224 | Cody/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Comments: 52
Kudos: 451





	1. Chapter 1

_". . . ah, ah, ah, uh . . ."_

Boil ignored the gasping breaths coming from the distant tent, his eyes on the double-moon horizon of whatever planet they were on this week. If one of his brothers still had the energy to give himself a hand, more power to him . . . well, as long as he didn't keep the rest of his tent-mates awake. Judging by the gentle snores resonating among the tents, most of the battalion had already knocked out for the night. 

_". . . ah, uh, huh . . ."_

Canvas slapped back at the wind as the night breeze rattled the outer skin of the General's tent, reminding Boil that he was on guard shift for a reason. His eyes caught the glint of one of his brothers' helmets - Longeye, if Boil recalled the rota correctly - as he turned his head, scanning the horizon from his watch point up high. Boil did the same, the clear scan no comfort. Clankers could come out of nowhere. 

If there was a ever a time when the 212th was vulnerable, this was it. Row after row of twelve-man tents, soldiers packed in like toasty-warm flatbread rolls, sleepy and partly unarmored. 

_". . . hn, huh, ah . . ."_

The tent behind him was tucked into a dip in the ground in an effort to lower its profile. Tall enough to stand up in, the General's tent stood twice as high as those sheltering the troopers. Murmuring from within suggested that General Kenobi and Commander Cody were foregoing sleep in favor of strategy and troop deployment, something they'd been working on since before Boil had taken over this guard post. 

_". . . ah, hah, ah,_ nnnnh!"

There was a pause from inside the tent, General Kenobi murmuring something too quiet for Boil to pick up on anything but weary amusement. The Commander snorted, and the discussion resumed. 

Boil couldn't actually see the trooper who'd been giving himself some stress relief, but he could hear his movements. The fast, sharp sound of two zips, one after the other. The rustle and snap of a nearby bush as the trooper picked one of the large leaves off it, the faint scrape as he wiped himself off, and then two more zipping sounds as he re-sealed the outer and inner layers of the tent. 

Faint complaints came to Boil's ears as the trooper crawled across his tent-mates to resume his spot, but the night soon settled back to the deep susurrus of his brothers' breathing. A night-bird called, sweet and high, and Boil tensed briefly as it sang. No, no, that wasn't an alarm call, the scan was clear. Longeye stood calmly above them, still watching, and Boil let that settle him. 

In the quiet, the faint rustling noises from inside the tent stood out all the more. The background conversation that Boil hadn't paid much attention to had dried up, replaced with the faint, hollow noise of someone trying to set down parts of their armor quietly. Was Cody staying over in the General's tent again? It made sense. Why disturb brothers getting some much-needed rest when there was room for more than one where he already was? 

"Here, let me help you with that." General Kenobi's words were barely a whisper, but when it came to soundproofing, the walls of the tent might as well have not been there. Definitely a design flaw, as much for keeping plans secret as to block out the sound of his brothers enjoying themselves. 

A couple of familiar snaps sounded, the clasps of clone armor disengaging, and Cody let out a relieved noise that was half a groan. It was easy to tell them apart, Cody's voice deeper and rougher than their Jedi's light Coruscanti accent. "We need to be quiet." 

A laugh that was barely a breath answered the Commander. "I believe that the trooper earlier demonstrated that quite ably." 

At least the General's tent was a polite distance from the men. Close enough to run the distance in a few seconds if necessary, far enough that quiet battle planning wouldn't wake the nearest soldiers. Far enough that only Boil could hear what was going on inside the tent, if they kept the noise down. 

A hitched breath from the General snapped Boil's attention back to the tent behind him. "Shh," the Commander breathed, and there were more urgent rustling sounds. Cody groaned, low and quiet. 

Boil's eyebrows rose under his helmet, and he ran another scan in the hopes of distracting himself. 

The two behind him, unfortunately, weren't making it easy. 

"Cody," the General whispered, and whatever he'd just done drew a stuttering moan from the Commander. The sound cut off as if sliced with a vibro-knife, faint wet noises and hums of approval replacing it as the General silenced his Commander with his lips. 

Boil re-focused on the horizon, valiantly trying to ignore the muffled gasps of pleasure coming from inside the General's tent.

He was definitely going to raise the concept of soundproofing on the General's tent when they got back to the _Negotiator_.


	2. Coda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Boil does, in fact, mention what he heard to Commander Cody.

"Thank you, men. Dismissed." 

Cody let his eyes close against his developing headache as his officers filed out of the post-battle briefing. The cool, recycled air that blew constantly out of the _Negotiator_ 's vents brushed over his face as the ship hummed around him, moment by moment reassurance that they weren't in the middle of a battle. There was no blood up here, no mud or sweat or any of the familiar stink of combat. His men were safe. 

"Ah, Commander?" 

Reluctantly, Cody opened his eyes, picking out the familiar patterns of Boil's armor. 

"Sir, I have concerns regarding . . . operational security."

"Why didn't you mention this during the briefing? Cody demanded, mentally reviewing every potential security breach from the mission. "Report." 

Boil's face froze into what the trooper probably imagined was a neutral expression. To Cody, who had seen countless shinies make exactly that face, it practically shouted the words, _'I don't want to do this.'_ "Ah, it's about the General's tent, sir. There's no apparent soundproofing or privacy shielding. We know that Separatist probe droids can get everywhere, and anyone standing outside can hear what's going on inside the tent." 

It was Cody's turn to freeze. 

"I could hear everything when I was on guard," Boil added unnecessarily. 

"Ah. Everything?" Cody managed. 

" _Yes_ , sir," Boil said meaningfully. 

"Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Boil." Cody was aware that he sounded slightly strangled. "I will ensure that this potential flaw in our security is dealt with promptly." 

"Thank you, Sir." Boil wasn't even trying to hide his relief. "Oh, and Commander?" 

Cody eyed Boil warily. 

"You owe me a drink." 

"Next time we're at 79's, I'm buying," Cody promised. 

* * *

The next time Boil saw the General's tent, it had mysteriously acquired privacy shielding.


End file.
